As the embodiment of the doctrine of large ships and artillery, the Emperor is the largest aircraft in history, equipped with a large number of weapons and heavy armor, and is equipped with a large number of ship-borne mobile weapons and ancillary equipment in accordance with the idea of using troops that is several generations ahead. It can be used as a rapid reaction force to deal with changes in the situation of war, a complete flagship facility can also play a role in the decisive battle of the main fleet, and its powerful communication capability makes it a mobile command center for the entire defense force; and even after the war, its unconventional size and armament can also become a guarantee of the prestige of the Yalfheim government.

It is no exaggeration to say that the Emperor is more qualified than any other warship of the same period, whether in the sky or in the water, to hang the terrifying titles of "Unsinkable Battleship" and "Ultimate War Machine".

-- At least from the outside.

The repertoire's half-open mouth spat a sour breath, a punch deep into his abdomen, followed by another knife in the neck, and he collapsed on the deck.

Ignoring the young soldier who had fainted to the ground, Valrhona neatly removed the keychain from his waist.

The Emperor is the culmination of the most advanced technology of the day, and while it is fully equipped, its internal structure is unprecedentedly complex, far more complex than any other ship of its time. Newly embarked crew members go through four to five days of training to memorize the locations of the various departments on board, and then pass an exam called "in-ship travel" before they can officially start life on board. Despite this, there are often crew members who get lost inside the ship. The only thing that can't be mistaken is the cafeteria, and no matter how stupid a guy is, he won't forget where to eat.

Valrhona had only been on the Great for three days, and even though she enjoyed freedom of movement, she was not a super-memory person who could hold 103,000 forbidden books in her head. It's not like Li Lin who can calculate and master the structure of an unfamiliar space by only relying on the echo wavelength, so that the magic has other uses. Fortunately, as an ancient species, Valrhona also has a high degree of sensitivity to Mana, and on this ship, except for a few, it can be said that it is unparalleled. Through induction, the Mana circuit spreads like blood vessels throughout the ship. Valrhona could easily grasp where she wanted to get to - the engine room where the floatation array operated.

With the quality of the Emperor, if you want to fly at high altitude with both speed and stability, you will inevitably need a large array of large floatation and powerful computing functions that can cope with the changing flow of high air, coordinate the engines, wings, and floating, so that the interior of the giant ship can be as smooth as the ground when sailing. In other words, as long as you work on these two aspects, the Great will not be able to fly normally.

The core component that controls the flight attitude and calculates the changes in the air flow is on the central bridge, which is heavily guarded, and if you don't get it right, it will not only be exposed, but in serious cases, it will cause the battleship to crash. It's the same in the engine room. The floating engine room at the bottom of the ship is relatively easy to get hold of, and the damage is easy to control.

So far, Valrhona has been doing well. Using the phantom technique to successfully get rid of Nidhogg, and also successfully infiltrated the engine room, now there is only one step away.

"Next ......"

Valrhona looked around at the neatly arranged iron boxes in front of her, where the manas that flowed from the central control room to the bottom of the surgical array met, changing their intensity and vibration cycles and transmitting to their destination, as described on the iron boxes. This is the so-called "exchange hub".

Opening one of the iron boxes, the chamber was illuminated by a white shimmer from the operation of the Celestial Crystal. Farhona was fascinated by the shiny hedron and the intricate patterns inside, and after a brief moment of distraction, Valrhona carefully examined the structure of the magic circuit.

With the almost obsessive-compulsive rigor of the elves, most of them have considered the danger of a system not working in a battle or accident, and I am afraid that the exchange mechanism connected to the floating-type array has also prepared a backup system. Destroying it will cause the backup system to work, and it will also inform the central control room that "someone is sabotaging here". Considering that there must be a gap for Roland and his party to escape. The stay should not be too long, and the movement should not be too small.

Valrhona closed her eyes and raised her hand in the direction of Mana's convergence.

Admiring the highly complex structure of the technique, and unhappy at the cheap mass production of magic and Mana by industrialization, Roland's face floated through the ripples in front of him. The coercion and fear released by Li Lin's mask-like smiling face - all distractions and feelings were removed, and the mirror-like calm and smooth telepathy sensed the mana circuits as fine as hair, searching for the few that could indeed avoid risks from hundreds of circuits.

Time passed little by little, and after 15 minutes as long as forever, Valrhona, whose forehead was covered with sweat, raised the corners of her mouth.

At this moment, the sound of rough yelling and the sound of the officer's ceremonial boots on the steel came from behind.

"Valrhona, you guy!!"

"Really...... I'm really miserable. ”

Spit out a long sigh, the girl's fingertips gathered Mana, and the angry Nidhogg appeared in the doorway, and before he could take a step, three of the five key circuits were severed, and the light of the Celestial Crystal and the Magic Array dimmed, and at the same time the sound of sirens and powerful shocks filled the entire ship.

＃＃＃＃＃＃＃＃＃＃＃＃

The Emperor has the shape of an airplane, but its flight mechanism is not quite the same as that of an airplane. No matter how it is said, it is more than 100,000 tons of iron lumps, even if it has extra-long wings like the U-2 high-altitude reconnaissance plane, and an aerodynamic layout designed for high-altitude flight, but under normal circumstances, even if the engine is fully open, coupled with the jet technique for emergency acceleration, it is believed that the Emperor can only glide slowly on the ground.

As long as the power is sufficient, even the bricks will break through the constraints of gravity to show you - this is the wisdom of the aviation industry, the power of the Emperor alone is not enough to fly into the sky, can fly smoothly to the sky, to a large extent, relying on the floating technique to lift the hull to the high altitude, by adjusting the output of the surgical array to control the flight altitude and hull attitude. To use a more vivid analogy, there are many invisible hands that hold the Emperor in the air, so that it can soar smoothly and quickly.

The two groups of floating arrays on the starboard side suddenly stopped operating, and at the same time, the output of the floating array on the right wing part decreased, and the weight of tens of thousands of tons, which had lost its support, dragged the entire battleship to the right side. The central control system immediately adjusted the engine output and the port side array output in an attempt to maintain balance, but it did not help. The giant ship spun in a state of uneven inertia, and the inside of the ship rolled like a starting washing machine.

Everything that wasn't secured bounced off the ground. Bodies and objects dance in the air. The bulkheads made terrible noises, and the sound and screams of fragile objects could not hide the rolling of the keel, and the flickering of unbroken lighting fixtures. Amid the sound of the siren, the inertial impact ignored rank and status, throwing everything into the air equally. In the confinement cell, Roland barely curled up, his back hitting the ceiling and falling to the ground. In the pain of almost fainting, the sound of the sealed hatch opening entered his ears, and when he reopened his eyes, the iron door that would never open except for a fixed time had been opened.

Failure caused by shock? No, the ship's control system is not yet delicate to this extent.

Before pondering further, the golden rat scurried into the confinement chamber and spat out a familiar female voice in the face of the surprised teenager.

"I'll open the way, please go to the little princess as soon as possible. ”

It was Valrhona who spoke.

Valrhona's plan was simple, to create chaos. After that, let the crew of the "Endeavour" seize the opportunity to get out.

It's impossible to forcibly save people under the security system of the Emperor and the surveillance of Nidhogg, and there is no need to even add "almost", not to mention that there is a guy on the ship who makes people's scalps tingle when they think about it, and just luring Nidhogg to dive into the bottom of the cabin to wreak havoc is Valrhona's limit. After that, it's all about gambling, as literally as it sounds.

All hopes are pinned on the speculation that "people are closely monitored and negligent demons". While moving around the ship, she secretly unleashed a demon and used the ship's pipelines to move around. After the impact of the battleship, use the demon "electric rat" to stun the guards and release the captives. Armed with the guards' weapons, the prisoners were led to the starboard hangar where the Endeavour was tethered to seize the Endeavour, and then picked up Roland and Minerva from the outside.

It's not a plan at all, it's too hasty, it's full of uncertainties, and there's no prior communication. to promote its implementation. It's just an impulse and an indefinite instinct of trust.

However, this seemingly flawed plan succeeded, and Valrhona's frenzied gamble succeeded at least for the moment.

"We don't have much time for that. ”

Through the anxious and nervous urging, the doubts were pushed back, and it was clear what the impact of this action would be on Valrhona and the entire dragon clan, and it was even more clear what kind of determination Valrhona had made.

Quickly unload the guard's weapon. Thrown into the confinement chamber, Roland followed the demon through the hallway.

"How's the battle going now?"

Putting aside the contradictions and resistance in his heart, Roland, who entered the situation, opened his mouth and asked that the most important thing at the moment is to have enough information.

"The maintenance pipe in the lower part of the engine room is being passed, and the other side has reacted and is organizing a defensive line. ”

In response to Valrhona's remarks, a faint sound of gunfire came down the pipe, and the distinctive crisp sound of Parabellum's pistol bullets could be faintly discerned.

The only people on this ship who can cope with the battle inside the ship, and can quickly go into battle, are the Guards and Marines. With their skills and familiarity with the situation inside the ship, if they could not break through the defense line as soon as possible and board the Endeavour, they would only be suppressed in a tragic end. But with that man in charge, I'm afraid he'll take a more efficient approach to resolving the battle, such as—

"Level 2 Disaster Notice, Level 2 Disaster Notice. All personnel are dressed in aerial suits, and the non-combatants of Block D-4 are evacuated through the α3 channel, repeat......"

Muttering a sigh of "I know", Roland quickened his pace, and the sea of clouds as thick as a carpet outside the porthole was descending little by little.

The ship was gaining altitude, and when the Emperor had risen to an altitude of more than 8,000 meters, the floodgates of the starboard hangar would open, and the captives who had been driven and lured there would fall down one after another, if not by the air currents caused by the difference in air pressure. At altitudes above 8,000 meters, no matter how good the adaptability is, it will fall, and due to the thinness of the mana in the sky, it is difficult to expect the life-sustaining technique to work properly. Once everyone is down, the crew in aerial suits can go in and clean up the battlefield. The broadcast was the clarion call for the beginning of the operation.

There is not much time left for them to fight without flaws.

"Damn, let everyone contain as many enemy troops as possible who are not wearing pressure suits in the hangar, if you can, capture the hangar control room and gate control mechanism, in any case, the hangar must be suppressed before we arrive!"

Gritted his teeth and passed through a pressure-resistant door, only a dozen meters away from the room where Minerva was imprisoned. After rescuing Minerva, you must-

His thoughts were suddenly interrupted, and a cold aura beyond his senses instantly filled the entire passage like an explosion, and the body that recognized it as a danger signal kicked the floor hard, and 0.2 seconds later, an arc-shaped "tube" poked out of the hatch on the left. A barrage of rainstorms was scattered on Roland's foothold.

Dada-

The first bullet accurately turned the rat into a cloud of blood mist, and the subsequent bullet point followed Roland's movement, and when Roland flashed back behind the pressure-resistant door, the gunfire stopped abruptly.

A chill ran down Roland's back. Most of the things just now are special barrels developed for street warfare and closed space operations, and from the point of view of being able to shoot accurately without probes around corners or behind doors, there may also be special optical aiming parts on the barrel to assist aiming.

What made him feel creepy was not the special equipment, but the opponent's superb shooting skills.

When an automatic rifle fires continuously, it is violently shaken due to the muzzle shake. The accuracy will drop significantly, so most of them use the method of three bursts to seek a balance between accuracy and rate of fire, but the shooter just now pulled the trigger to the end. In addition, although the accuracy of the curved barrel is not known, if it is equipped with that kind of strange-shaped thing, the ballistic stability will definitely be affected, and even if it does not become a Brown telepath, it is inevitable that there will be a tragedy of "aiming at the head but hitting the egg". Being able to almost hit a target that moves in a fast zigzag makes it hard not to think that it's a monster or some kind of machine hiding behind that door.

Among those Roland knew. There's just one guy who can do that.

“...... Caspar?"

"As soon as I came out, I ran to find a woman first, and it really hasn't changed at all. ”

A teasing smile floated from the front. Roland's hand holding the gun trembled slightly.

The action had already been predicted by the other party, and Roland, who realized this, immediately thought that with Li Lin's usual cautious and thoughtful style, I am afraid that Minerva has been transferred to another place to avoid this trump card that can affect the strategic layout of the elven camp from being taken away.

Knowing this, Roland couldn't move.

He didn't know where Minerva had been transferred, and Caspar was a problem.

Roland is well aware of Caspar's mode of action: be prepared. Kill with one hit, and once you set your sights on your prey, you will die without saying anything and be ruthless. Like the beast half of his blood, cunning and fierce. The fact that he was able to break away from him before was largely due to Caspar's mental instability, plus a little luck. Right now......

Ping!

The bullet that hit the deck bounced and clung to Roland's ear and hit the wall, the blast scraping across his face, his cheeks tingling with a hot sting.

"You are the one who betrayed first, and I will never show mercy to the guy who betrays repeatedly, and I will put an end to the bad relationship between us today. ”

The words were a little vague, the result of the use of magic to control the vibration of the air, at this moment Caspar was carefully moving his position, or was he preparing a trap for Roland, a bullet waiting to drill into the head of a reckless drill?

"Can't you let me go?"

He asked, raising his pistol.

"It's too thick-skinned to say such things until now, right?"

"Each other, each other. ”

The shots staggered, the lights shattered, and the passage was plunged into darkness, and a series of flashes of muzzle fire illuminated the fast-moving figures of the two teenagers.

The caliber of the bullet, the muzzle velocity, etc., are meaningless, and at this distance, any bullet is enough to cause a fatal injury.

Roland felt Caspar's breath move at a rapid pace, moving at high speed to secure the shooting range, and from time to time he unleashed a diversion shot in an attempt to slow him down.

The ricocheting shot away a few strands of hair, and Roland fired at the moving black shadow, cursing the pitiful 8-round magazine of the imitation P38 pistol, and touched the back with his left hand.

At this moment, the noise of the assault rifle fell silent, and Roland, who had been waiting for the bullet to run out, immediately pounced. Although the assault rifle firepower is fierce, the high rate of fire also means that the bullet is consumed faster, and it takes at least 2~3 seconds to replace a new magazine, which is an excellent opportunity to counterattack.

The black iron bump smashed head-on, and the moment it flashed sideways, a light flashed in front of it again, and a gunshot like an explosion chased Roland.

The shock wave of 45ACP slapped Roland's body, and the continuous bullets tore through him like bloody hounds, forcing him into a corner.

Caspar began to gallop again. Quickly move sideways to avoid the trajectory of the bullet, pull out another pistol from your waist, and then lean over and cross your hands in front of your chest.

Ping--!

There was only one gunshot, and there was no Roland in front of the muzzle, but Roland, who jumped away, felt a tremble. Reflexively twisted his body, followed by a bullet flying diagonally from above.

"Ricochet again?"

Catching a glimpse of sparks from the ceiling, Roland flashed by a fraction of a millimeter again. Despite the dim lighting, the passage was a sealed space, and the ceiling and walls were smooth planes, and under such conditions, it was not difficult for Caspar to use a target with limited power from the ricochet. Roland, in turn, was able to predict Caspar's ballistics.

As he thought so, he felt an itchy chill on his forehead. Visualizing the thin thunder light, Roland immediately sank his body, and then the torn air blew overhead. In the prediction, the bullet that bounces off the ground and hits the jaw changes its trajectory and turns to a frontal attack. It's incredible, how the hell did he do it?

"The reason why this world is so chaotic is because there are too many idealists like you, do you know it!!"

Caspar pulled the trigger and roared. There was a hint of sadness in the angry voice.

"Irresponsibly spreading so-called ideals and irresponsibly agitating others. It's obviously weak, and it's not quite!!"

Caspar's roar tore at Roland's chest, and he was probably right, maybe because his experience gave him a more realistic perspective on the world, or maybe he unconsciously projected himself when he said these words.

"That's why we need to surpass human beings...... The power of the wisdom seed. That big man who surpasses everything is where hope lies, why don't you guys understand!"

As he dodged the anticipatory ricocheting attack again, Roland caught tiny sparks in the direction where the bullets were flying, and the flickering flash of fire did not bloom on the walls, but in the empty air. Look at Caspar's posture when he fired. Roland understood what was going on.

"Leave your life to someone else to plan and execute – is that okay?"

Two ricocheting bullets collided in the air, and one of them adjusted its trajectory and flew towards the back of Roland's head. But when the bullet arrived, Roland was no longer in his original position. By the time Caspar pulled the trigger, he was already dodging.

The Mauser swept away the bullets in the blink of an eye, and the colliding bullets weaved a tight barrage, but Roland emerged through the cracks in the net. The two pieces of metal that had no bullets smashed into Roland 2 meters away, and in less than a second, Caspar pulled out the special "Eagle of the Guard" from under his ribs. There was no way he could have let his target escape at such a distance, and the .44 Magnum pistol rounds were definitely sufficient.

However, Caspar didn't shoot, and a canister rolled over, and the flashbang that had been hiding behind Roland released a flash of light that engulfed the passage with 2.5 million candela, and a loud pop and strong wind howled through - just as Roland had calculated.

With the anxiety of "it will not be able to catch up", he ran as hard as he could, thinking that even if it was a second early, he must rush to Minerva's side.

Reality deviated from his expectations, and a black hole appeared in front of his vision.

Standing with his feet on the ceiling, defying gravity and blood rushing overhead, Caspar turned his gun on Roland.

"General. ”

Contrary to the nerve-numbing whisper of silence, .44 Magnum spared no mercy at Roland.

The moment the trigger was pulled, the stunned horror of defeat came to Caspar's face.

In front of the muzzle, between Caspar, the bullet, and Roland, was a glittering barrier, blue-white light outlining intricate geometric patterns.

Magic. It is also a composite technique that combines two techniques - "strong wind blowing" and "barrier".

Caspar opened his mouth to shout, and for a moment everything was surrounded by light, and Roland didn't hear anything, just swung his fist into Caspar's face in the wind.

“...... Deflect the bullet with a strong wind and deflect the bullet with a barrier...... I didn't notice that you were secretly preparing magic, and you lost completely. ”

Caspar lay on the ground, panting and talking intermittently, the blow to the head made him almost faint on the spot, and he couldn't even stand up under the concussion, and he could not even stand up under the concussion, and it was already the limit to be able to speak, which could also be said to be reckless.

Roland wanted to comfort him, but he couldn't say anything.

The victor's consolation can be seen as a hypocrisy or a humiliation, and for the haughty Caspar he must have understood the latter.

Even though there was an irreparable rift in their friendship, Roland didn't want to spur the friends who grew up together.

"The princess has been transferred to the port hangar, and will soon be transferred, if you want to do it, move faster. ”

"Caspar ......"

". Or do you still want to laugh and humiliate me?"

“......”

The friend blocked his eyes with his arm, unable to see whether his expression was pain or resentment, swallowing the empathetic sadness and pain, Roland turned and ran away.

"I'm going to kill you next time, Roland Dark. ”

The sound of gnashing teeth came from behind, the volume was not high, but the biting cold made Roland's footsteps pause. After a second, the boy ran towards the other end of the corridor without looking back. (To be continued......)